Chapter 77: A Battlefield
After Lu Ming and Wen Xue changed their clothes, Wen Chu had also rested enough. The two sides discussed their positions, and Wen Chu chose to stand on the right side of the net, while Qi Siyan stood near the left baseline. Wen Xue also chose to stand on the opposite side of the net, with Lu Ming behind her to the left.
They decided who would serve first by flipping a coin, and Qi Siyan ultimately started.
Qi Siyan tossed the ball high and hit a perfect shot right on the line. Even with his quick reaction and speed, Lu Ming could only barely catch the ball and return it, but the quality of the return wasn't very high. Wen Chu seized the opportunity and immediately jumped up to intercept, showing no mercy. The situation changed too quickly, and Wen Xue had no time to react. As a result, the ball quickly passed her, landed, and went out of bounds.
They quickly scored a goal within ten seconds.
"Wow, so handsome." Qi Siyan praised from behind, looking at Wen Chu with undisguised admiration and a smile in his eyes.
Initially, he chose to approach Wen Chu partly because of her surname, but after spending so much time together, he was genuinely drawn to her vibrant life force.
Every time a woman appeared in his life, she brought him a different kind of surprise, making his heart, which had been like stagnant water, start to beat slowly and stir up some waves.
Wen Chu turned around and smiled at him, and his heart started beating even faster.
Wen Xue turned around and glanced at Lu Ming with some annoyance.
After the two teams switched sides, it was Lu Ming's turn to serve this time.
The atmosphere on the field quickly became serious and focused due to the unspoken competition. The ball was constantly tossed high into the air and struck the other side with a whirlwind, resulting in a back-and-forth contest.
The first four rounds ended in a draw because the coordination between the two sides and their teammates was not very good. Wen Chu and Qi Siyan had actually coordinated better because they had practiced together for two rounds, but Lu Ming's skills were obviously not bad, and they were unable to gain the upper hand.
By the fifth game, Wen Chu and Qi Siyan had gradually developed some chemistry. When Qi Siyan served, Wen Chu would coordinate with her, and she would always be able to quickly intercept and kill the ball when she stood at the net.
Qi Siyan and Lu Ming were evenly matched, and they could barely return each other's shots. Therefore, the key to the victory lay with Wen Chu and Wen Xue at the net, which led to Wen Chu dominating the fifth and sixth games.
Wen Chu played with great enthusiasm, intercepting both Wen Xue's and Lu Ming's shots whenever she had the chance. She observed both Lu Ming's and Wen Xue's movements, and when her opponents thought she was going to repeat her old tricks, she changed her strategy and hit a fast, high-pressure shot from a different angle.
Wen Xue kept missing her shots, and it was visibly difficult for her. Her positioning and coordination with Lu Ming became increasingly chaotic.
The three tacitly assumed that Wen Chu's fierce fighting style was an act of venting her anger and seeking revenge. In reality, only Wen Chu herself knew that she was simply desperately trying to complete the mission as soon as possible.
Although there's no penalty for losing a side quest, it will keep being issued until she completes it and the system achieves its goal. And the later quests get increasingly nasty. Right now, she's being asked to play ball with them. If she loses, they might end up having to sit down and eat together.
Wen Chu wasn't sure why the system issued this task, but it was definitely meant to annoy her.
For her own physical and mental well-being, she must win.
Lu Ming couldn't stand her playing style, so he went to the net to help Wen Xue share some of the burden. The two teams' positioning became more and more like a high-attack mode where they both guarded the net. In the last point of the sixth game, in order to avoid wasting time by adding another ball after a tie, Wen Chu used all her strength to jump up and hit the ball at high speed. Wen Xue couldn't react in time. She raised her racket and touched the ball, but she couldn't completely block it. The ball grazed the edge of the cue stick, slowed down the impact, and hit her shoulder.
Wen Xue cried out in pain, clutching her shoulder and falling to the ground. Lu Ming and Qi Siyan's expressions tightened, and Wen Chu also paused for a moment, taking two steps forward to check on Wen Xue's condition.
"Xiaoxue!" Lu Ming frowned, his face showing concern as he stepped forward to support her, and asked in a low voice, "Where are you hurt?"
"I'm fine." Wen Xue rubbed her shoulders, and with someone's help, she stood up again, composed herself, and said, "Let's continue."
"I didn't mean to," Wen Chu explained in a low voice, feeling that anyone with eyes could see through it.
Qi Siyan came up and leaned over the net, checking on Wen Xue's condition: "Are you alright, Sister Wen Xue? It's true that accidents like this can easily happen when you're standing in front of the net, but Wen Chu really didn't do it on purpose."
Wen Xue nodded, enduring the pain: "I know, it was because my reaction was a little slow and I couldn't block it."
“But is it necessary to play so aggressively? It’s not a professional league.” Lu Ming said to Wen Chu, his words revealing his disapproval.
Wen Chu tilted her head: "Is it wrong for me to be serious?"
"No, no, no, it's nothing. The racket blocked it, so it doesn't hurt that much. Keep going," Wen Xue said, trying to smooth things over.
Wen Chu glanced at her but said nothing more.
"Let's switch places. It's really dangerous standing in front," Lu Ming said in a low voice.
Wen Xue nodded and smiled sheepishly, "I think so too. It's mainly because my volleying skills are too bad, and I can never catch Xiao Chu's shots."
"I'm still at the net." Wen Chu gave Lu Ming a look that said, "Go ahead and kill me if you dare, or I'll still kill you."
Qi Siyan pulled her aside, looked down at her, and asked half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Are you sure? I don't want you to get hurt. That guy Lu Ming... he's obviously biased towards Sister Wen Xue. I'm afraid he'll retaliate against you. If he favors her, I'll favor you."
"No need, I'm afraid of his retaliation?" Wen Chu coldly stretched her wrists and arms, then pushed him and urged, "Go back quickly, I must win this round."
Qi Siyan chuckled helplessly, "Alright. We'll definitely win."
Lu Ming stood opposite them, expressionless, watching the two people whispering together. He found Qi Siyan's smile somewhat irritating, and a fire inexplicably welled up inside him, which he suppressed, but his expression grew even colder.
Wen Chu returned to her position and stood diagonally opposite Lu Ming. They glanced at each other from afar, and then Wen Chu looked away, looking at Wen Xue who was about to serve in the distance.
Her chest felt heavy and swollen, as if she couldn't quite describe the feeling. She would never forget the look the man had given her just now because of Wen Xue.
At the start of the seventh round, Wen Chu didn't hold back because of the earlier accident; instead, she became even more aggressive. It was as if she was telling her opponents that she hadn't been playing with her full strength just now, and that this was the time to go.
In this set, she intercepted every ball served by Lu Ming, changing her volleying and high-pressure tactics. Her opponent seemed to be competing with her and became much more serious.
Wen Chu missed a shot and failed to return the ball, resulting in a loss of the game and the score becoming 4-3. She has 4 points, and Lu Ming has 3.
She got even angrier, and from then on she didn't seem to be playing a game anymore. Regardless of winning or losing, she would aim at every ball and intentionally throw it at people.
There was not a trace of love in her eyes, only a single-minded determination to kill this ungrateful wretch.
The match gradually evolved into a one-on-one contest between the two of them.
Lu Ming's ball skills are much better than Wen Xue's. He can receive balls of all levels, unless they are too aggressive, and he can also find the right time to give an appropriate counterattack. As for those that are too outrageous, he would rather lose than force a return, so as not to be "retaliated against".
Even though he realized the girl was doing it on purpose, he didn't show any extra emotion on his face, nor did he retaliate.
Wen Chu did not thank the other party for their "generosity," but instead found the feeling of punching cotton particularly disgusting.
The eighth game was a close contest, with the score tied throughout. In the final point, Wen Chu seized the opportunity to glide over the net and hit Lu Ming hard in the chest with a dull thud.
5:3.
Lu Ming clutched his chest and staggered backward, his brows furrowing slightly. He glanced at her without showing any emotion, but Wen Chu raised her chin and returned his gaze without any remorse, her face clearly saying, "You deserve it."
The thought of how annoyed the other person must be made her feel a little happier.
Qi Siyan, standing behind, saw this and a gloating smile flashed across her eyes, her lips curling into a cold smirk.
Wen Xue, standing not far away, looked worried upon seeing this: "Lu Ming! Are you alright?"
"It's nothing." Lu Ming shook his head, not intending to pursue the matter.
Wen Chu simply said, "If you lose one more game, you will lose."
"Wen Chu! You clearly did that on purpose. Do you know that smashing things like that could cause serious injuries?" Wen Xue finally became serious, expressing her dissatisfaction.
She tilted her head and pointed at Lu Ming with her paddle: "I think he's alright, isn't he? If something happened, I'd be the first to pay for his hospital treatment, you don't need to worry about it. Besides, he's my boyfriend, how I want to tease him is between us, and he hasn't said anything, has he?"
After she finished speaking, her heart tightened again. Once she calmed down, her earlier joy vanished; Lu Ming's affection for her had decreased, and in the end, she was the one who would suffer.
An unprecedented sense of frustration made her feel like she couldn't breathe, and she had no way to vent it. She slowed her breathing and waited for a while, but the system didn't send any notification that her favorability rating had decreased.
She glanced at Lu Ming again, wondering if she should thank him for his magnanimity.
But thinking about it, it doesn't really matter whether it goes down or not, since it's nowhere near 70% anyway.
Wen Xue got angry and couldn't help but say, "Everyone knows you're not real. You have to know your limits even if you're being willful!"
Watching the two of them so affectionately, caring for each other when one was hurt, Wen Chu's gaze grew colder and colder. She scoffed, "Everyone? I seem to remember everyone knowing that it's me and him dating. As for you, are you trying to interfere and make our two families a laughingstock?"
"Wen Chu!"
Wen Chu had no patience to listen to her saintly pronouncements anymore, turned around and went back to her own area, saying, "Again!"
She seemed to be on steroids, playing eight games at such a high intensity and still full of energy, even though her hands were slightly numb from repeatedly hitting the ball with force.
Lu Ming straightened up, and Wen Xue looked at him with a complicated expression. "How about we stop playing?"
"I'm fine." Lu Ming's expression remained calm. "Since we've started, we should see it through to the end."
Wen Xue pouted and said, "Okay, then let's play seriously and not let her win."
Qi Siyan handed Wen Chu a towel to wipe her sweat and teased, "It's a good thing I'm your partner, otherwise you would have suffered."
"No, I only do that to that guy."
Qi Siyan smiled and looked down: "We won the last round." Wen Chu gave him an OK sign.
But Wen Chu sensed something was wrong as soon as the ninth inning started.
She felt that the force and speed of the balls hitting her from the other side were much faster. Even though it looked to the naked eye that Wen Xue and Lu Ming's swing posture and force had not changed, she felt more and more strained with each ball she received.
The ball felt like it was made of lead.
Wen Chu wasn't the type to force things even if she wasn't capable. After realizing she was falling behind, she calmed down, stopped trying to steal the ball, and gave more opportunities to Qi Siyan. She just needed to stick to her own little corner of the field.
Even so, she still couldn't get into the right mindset. When Lu Ming returned a ball to her, she reached out to catch it. She felt like she could catch it, but when she swung her racket, she missed, as if she were seeing things.
She frowned in annoyance, and Qi Siyan asked gently, "Are you tired? Leave the rest to me."
She nodded and served another ball. After several rounds, the ball finally came into Lu Ming's hands. Lu Ming hit the ball with a standard forehand and brought it close to Wen Chu. Wen Chu felt that the speed was extremely fast, as if he was using all his strength to deal with her.
She figured she probably wouldn't be able to catch it, so she didn't try to force it, but her body seemed to lose control, moving a few inches in the direction the ball was coming from, and she even raised her racket.
But she couldn't raise the racket to the correct height in time, and the ball slammed into her wrist with tremendous speed, causing a heavy pain. She groaned softly, lost the ball, and the racket slipped from her hand.
Everyone was startled again. Lu Ming looked at her, his body subconsciously taking a step forward, then he stopped.
The score became 5:4.
"Wen Chu!" Qi Siyan rushed over and grabbed her wrist, asking anxiously, "Are you alright?"
Wen Chu pulled her hand away from Qi Siyan's, rubbed it herself, and said calmly, "It's nothing. I'm probably just a little tired, and my actions aren't keeping up with my brain. Let's go to the internet cafe next time, I'll go to the back."
Qi Siyan nodded and said okay, then looked at Lu Ming with dissatisfaction, "It's just a friendly match, there's no need to play so fiercely, is there?"
Faced with the accusation, Lu Ming remained silent. He clearly saw Wen Chu deliberately move forward a little, which was why her wrist was hit. He coldly watched their intimate contact and asked, "Can we continue?"
The man's indifferent attitude sent a dull pain through Wen Chu's chest. She bit the inside of her lip, composed herself, and stood up again, saying only, "Come on."
There's still a chance at 5:4. We just need to win this game; otherwise, we'll have to play a tiebreaker.
They switched positions and stood in different spots, rested for three minutes, and then continued.
Wen Chu was indeed quite tired, both inside and out, but she forced herself to cheer up and accept the challenge.
But she felt the ball flying towards her was getting faster and faster, with increasing force, both swift and heavy, like a bullet magnified ten times. It seemed as if Wen Xue and Lu Ming were working together to deal with her.
Each time she returned the ball, her wrist would hurt more, and the accuracy of her body movements would decrease. She would try to stop in the middle, but would inexplicably go a few points further out, as if the friction under her feet had decreased.
Qi Siyan did indeed absorb a large portion of the pressure, and the situation remained tilted in their favor. Lu Ming's final shot was a very tricky angle, quite far from her, in order to pull the score back.
Wen Chu felt that dragging things out any longer would be detrimental to her situation, so she mustered her strength, forced herself to control her body, rushed forward, swung her racket back, hit the ball back, and made a thrilling shot that landed on the line, winning the final game.
But she
"Great! We won!" Qi Siyan said and turned around to find someone to celebrate with, but then heard the echo of the racket falling to the ground.
Due to the unprecedented recoil, Wen Chu fell heavily backward to the ground.
"Wen Chu!" Qi Siyan exclaimed in surprise, quickly throwing down her racket and stepping forward to half-lift and half-help her to sit up. Then she glared fiercely at the man opposite her: "Lu Ming, isn't it a bit too much to win by force?"
Wen Chu felt a burning pain in her hands and feet.
Lu Ming frowned slightly upon seeing this. He hadn't used any force at all.
Wen Xue saw through her younger sister's trick almost instantly. There was no surprise in her eyes, only helplessness at the opponent's repeated use of the same trick, and resentment at losing the game.
She pursed her lips, glanced knowingly at Lu Ming, not wanting to expose Wen Chu's little trick in front of Qi Siyan, but she couldn't help but indirectly stand up for Lu Ming: "This can't be blamed on Lu Ming, we didn't use any force, it was clearly a normal ball, how could it fall over?"
Wen Chu endured the pain while letting out a sigh of relief at winning the match. Immediately, the system's voice echoed in her mind: "Congratulations, host, on successfully completing the side quest! Reward: S-rank item: Permission Card."
System: "Permission Card: Whether it's collecting information or stealing secrets, certain permissions are required. If you don't have them, then use this card. Applicable to: Anyone. Number of uses: Two. How to use: When access is restricted, the host can silently say the name of this card and state the permissions they wish to obtain."
Wen Chu was incredibly frustrated; she also wanted to know what was going on. Was it because they couldn't stand seeing her win so triumphantly?
She gasped for breath and retorted, "You mean I was faking it to gain sympathy?"
Lu Ming looked at her with hesitation, as if he also suspected that she was faking it, trying to gain sympathy and not pointing it out in a self-righteous way. He walked over the net to her side and said as if to give her a way out, "If it's serious, I'll take you to the hospital."
Ah, what a good person.
"No need, I'm not that delicate." Wen Chu's face turned completely cold. She stood up with a stiff upper lip, turned around, and wanted to leave this place immediately, this place that made it hard for her to breathe.
But after taking only a few steps, a sharp pain shot through her ankle again, and she groaned in agony as she squatted down once more.
Her feet have had a lot of trouble since she came in.
Seeing this, Qi Siyan quickly stepped forward and said with a stern face, "What kind of spoiled behavior is this? It's obvious that someone is petty and bullying you. I'll take you to the hospital." Without saying another word, he picked Wen Chu up and carried her in his arms.
This surprised the other three as well.
Wen Chu looked at Qi Siyan, who had picked her up, somewhat bewildered, and stammered, "N-no need, Siyan..."
"Do you think you can walk like this? Don't be reckless. Sometimes it's good to rely on your friends."
Lu Ming stepped forward, blocking Qi Siyan's path: "If anyone should be seen off, it should be me. Since I was the one who got injured, I should be responsible. Besides, I'm her boyfriend now. What do you mean by holding her?"
Wen Xue stood to one side, her gaze suddenly turning to Lu Ming, her expression becoming more complicated.
Qi Siyan's lips curled into a mocking smile: "You can say that outside. We all know what your relationship with Wen Chu is. You don't need to diligently play the role of your good boyfriend to the outside world. It's pointless. You should take care of taking Sister Wen Xue home. Sister Wen Xue, we're leaving now." After saying goodbye to Wen Xue, he hugged Wen Chu tighter, walked past Lu Ming, and headed out.
Lu Ming moved his lips, wanting to step forward and say something, but Wen Xue stopped him: "Forget it. Si Yan doesn't know Xiao Chu's personality, but don't you and I know each other well? She's done this so many times since college. Maybe she just saw me injured and wanted to get your attention in the same way. It's nothing serious. But Si Yan is so nervous... I feel something's off. Could it be that he... likes Xiao Chu?"
"I don't know." Watching the two figures leave, Lu Ming's voice carried a coldness he himself didn't realize.
He walked expressionlessly to the rest area, wiped his sweat with a towel, and only after snapping out of his thoughts did he remember to hand Wen Xue a clean towel: "Do you want me to take you home?"
"No need, I drove here."
"I have other things to do at the company, so I'll be leaving now."
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